India - beyond the 10/10 agra strat!

[ruminator]

I'm struggling with India still at the moment - and although I tick the record game box on QS it doesn't seem to take any notice when the game starts so I don't have any recent replays!

Some questions I am pondering on:

1 Forums state that India improve when remaining in colonial but against xbow/pike/musket spammers they will eventually outmass me due to cheaper troop costs. Gurkhas are very expensive in colonial with only 20-25 settlers built. Apart from fighting under my fort are there any other ideas? Mass strelets/musk/cossack always appear to be a nightmare for me - they have twice as many troops as I do!

2 Camels seem good with upgrade cards - a hussar and super ruyter both available in colonial. Does anyone use elephants though? The high pop cost seems excessive and they have specialised use. I admit I haven't much of a an idea with elephants.

3 Also the desert terror card I think it is? I am confused by the description of the attack multiple vs HI. Does this make Sowars better v RI but worse against HI? If so, should I play it against say musketeer heavy races like Brits? It seems to be potentially really good for anti-cav.

4 I tend to always go Brits in the consulate. I was wondering if I need to change at any point?

5 I rarely build a mosque. Are any of the upgrades and merc units worthwhile? I admit I seem to constantly be running short of gold in game - so mercs are rarely an option.

6 I was winning vs a Brit and he went heavy on musk/gren with them mixed up together. Is there anything I can do here? I was winning up until that point - my massive troop loss resulted in me losing the water to him and so losing the econ battle.

Any help would be well received. I'll post a replay when my opponent also ticks the record game box!!

EDIT: actually just writing this down has given me some ideas to try already.

[Sporting_Lisbon]

3 Also the desert terror card I think it is? I am confused by the description of the attack multiple vs HI. Does this make Sowars better v RI but worse against HI? If so, should I play it against say musketeer heavy races like Brits? It seems to be potentially really good for anti-cav.

All those numbers mean that sowars' attack vs HI remains the same while it gets a big boost vs RI.

4 I tend to always go Brits in the consulate. I was wondering if I need to change at any point?

Don't worry, Brits are all you need

6 I was winning vs a Brit and he went heavy on musk/gren with them mixed up together. Is there anything I can do here? I was winning up until that point - my massive troop loss resulted in me losing the water to him and so losing the econ battle.

Ghurkas with sepoys as meatshield would have worked i think

[Sporting_Lisbon]

1 Forums state that India improve when remaining in colonial but against xbow/pike/musket spammers they will eventually outmass me due to cheaper troop costs. Gurkhas are very expensive in colonial with only 20-25 settlers built. Apart from fighting under my fort are there any other ideas? Mass strelets/musk/cossack always appear to be a nightmare for me - they have twice as many troops as I do!

Make it half sepoys half ghurkas so that you can manage your resources better. And they outspam you probably because they use cards. Try making ghurkas from fort and shipping 5 sepoys

[Soccerman771]

India>>>Brit.

If you need eco. don't go Agra. 10/10 is only good for very fast rushes to overwhelm your opponent. Try a 14-15 vil Karni mata or Tower of Victory.

Karni and french consulate can give you a superior eco. Brit is the way to go 90% of the time. However ottos can be good for the 4 vils and/or the hussars.

Vs musks go gurhka's for sure. Ele's are very much worth it. They eat lb's and strelets for lunch and have plenty of room left over.

The desert terror is good for Zamb's and is really what makes them OP.

The mosque is decent (notice I didn't say good) for the tigers in colonial, and elephant boosts in fortress.

[rufio_eht]

9/10 or 10/10 every time vs brit, u out mass him early on, 12 sepoys should be out in under 5, maybe a few seconds after at the worst. You should not be getting outmassed by pike/xbow/musket by any other civ because sepoy owns every one of those units. just dont get too close, keep them constrained and pressured without losing ur sepoys. very nice if u can just hit and run, and heal by monks. I think you just need to keep in mind your resources need to be geared towards one thing and one thing only, food and a little bit of gold. If you practice, you can get ur ratios right and be perfectly efficient. only when you are pumping out 5 sepoys every time non stop and u have extra resources should u be collecting wood for a consulate, although i prefer to go with a stable first and start making sowars, because about that time i have already shipped both wood trickles, 4 sowars and 5 sepoys already and now u can ship 600 gold, since you've been collecting mostly food for sepoys. proper micro with sepoy/sowar owns everything in age 2 that comes from a eurpoean civ, as far as i can think of, especially if u do everything perfectly because if u do this too late u will have much more trouble.

[huGGy]

Hm i would go Agra vs Brits as well and ship 4 sowars first, cause the brit player will go Lbs most of the time to defend vs Sepoys. Second card in age 2 should be that 2nd woodtrickle card or 300 Export. Sepoys aren't really worth it vs Brits imo.

[Sporting_Lisbon]

I can't see what brit can do vs sepoy/sowar with camel cards Sepoys are really good.

[huGGy]

[quote=""Sporting_Lisbon""]I can't see what brit can do vs sepoy/sowar with camel cards Sepoys are really good.[/quote]

Lbs behind a wall are brilliant 5-10 Pikes for Cav and then boom. Well it worked for me. I had more trouble when the India player boomed his way to 3rd age and went for eles then.

[Sporting_Lisbon]

Ah, wall sounds good

[Navarone_Guy]

Originality!? Preposterous! That isn't allowed with India and Japan!